Oponeo.pl S.A. (WSE:OPN) Stock Goes Ex-Dividend In Just Four Days

Readers hoping to buy Oponeo.pl S.A. (WSE:OPN) for its dividend will need to make their move shortly, as the stock is about to trade ex-dividend. The ex-dividend date is usually set to be two business days before the record date, which is the cut-off date on which you must be present on the company's books as a shareholder in order to receive the dividend. The ex-dividend date is important because any transaction on a stock needs to have been settled before the record date in order to be eligible for a dividend. In other words, investors can purchase Oponeo.pl's shares before the 19th of May in order to be eligible for the dividend, which will be paid on the 23rd of May.

The company's upcoming dividend is zł4.00 a share, following on from the last 12 months, when the company distributed a total of zł5.00 per share to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, Oponeo.pl has a trailing yield of 4.9% on the current stock price of zł103.00. We love seeing companies pay a dividend, but it's also important to be sure that laying the golden eggs isn't going to kill our golden goose! So we need to investigate whether Oponeo.pl can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.

Our free stock report includes 1 warning sign investors should be aware of before investing in Oponeo.pl. Read for free now.

If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Oponeo.pl paid out 61% of its earnings to investors last year, a normal payout level for most businesses. A useful secondary check can be to evaluate whether Oponeo.pl generated enough free cash flow to afford its dividend. It paid out 84% of its free cash flow as dividends, which is within usual limits but will limit the company's ability to lift the dividend if there's no growth.

It's positive to see that Oponeo.pl's dividend is covered by both profits and cash flow, since this is generally a sign that the dividend is sustainable, and a lower payout ratio usually suggests a greater margin of safety before the dividend gets cut.

See our latest analysis for Oponeo.pl

Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Businesses with strong growth prospects usually make the best dividend payers, because it's easier to grow dividends when earnings per share are improving. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. It's encouraging to see Oponeo.pl has grown its earnings rapidly, up 39% a year for the past five years.

Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. Oponeo.pl has delivered 67% dividend growth per year on average over the past 10 years. It's exciting to see that both earnings and dividends per share have grown rapidly over the past few years.

The Bottom Line

Is Oponeo.pl worth buying for its dividend? Higher earnings per share generally lead to higher dividends from dividend-paying stocks over the long run. However, we'd also note that Oponeo.pl is paying out more than half of its earnings and cash flow as profits, which could limit the dividend growth if earnings growth slows. Overall we're not hugely bearish on the stock, but there are likely better dividend investments out there.

While it's tempting to invest in Oponeo.pl for the dividends alone, you should always be mindful of the risks involved. For example - Oponeo.pl has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.

A common investing mistake is buying the first interesting stock you see. Here you can find a full list of high-yield dividend stocks.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.